This is the first book in Kathleen Marple Kalb's An Ella Shane Mystery series. It's set in New York 1899 and follows Ella Shane, a successful opera singer known for singing men's roles. She runs her own company with her cousin Tommy, and during one of their Romeo and Juliet performances, the soprano Violette, who is playing Juliet to Ella's Romeo, dies in a suspicious manner. The death is ruled an accident, but Violette's cousin, who happens to be a duke, travels to New York to find out what really happened to her. Ella and Violette may not have gotten along with each other but she feels a sense of responsibility for what happened to the young singer and does everything she can to help the duke.

This is a fun and entertaining historical cozy, with a great cast of characters, an interesting mystery, and a touch of romance. The author's writing style flows smoothly, and she has clearly done her research into the setting and society's views on women at the time. Ella is a character that readers will find easy to like and relate to. She's independent, very kind-hearted, and a huge bookworm. She comes from humble beginnings and has worked very hard for Everything she has- money, a successful career, and a good reputation. Yet, she has never forgotten her roots and is always willing to help anyone in need and she treats her staff like family. I enjoyed getting to know her and look forward to spending more time with her. While the mystery kept me guessing, it didn't really play a huge role in the story. However, I was enjoying the characters and the setting so much that it didn't bother me. The reveal was action-packed and definitely made up for it.
Overall, I think this series is off to a great start and I look forward to the second book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Books for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is the first of new series Ella Stone Mysteries. This is set in New York 1899 and Ella Stone (i.e. Ellen O’Shaunessy) is an opera singer who sings men’s roles and runs her own Opera Company with her cousin Tommy. In the final performance of their tour of Romeo and Juliet in New Haven the soprano Violette Saint Claire playing Juliet to Ella’s Romeo really dies in the death scene. The death is deemed an accident, but her cousin Gilbert Saint Aubyn Duke of Leith arrives to learn what happened. Violette was really Lady Frances Saint Aubyn and had run away from home a couple of years prior, when he arrives at Ella and Tommy’s residence, he assumes they are of questionable moral character as all theater people are. Ella who is practicing her fencing then challenges St. Aubyn. Great scene in which she puts him in his place and forces him to concede that Ella and Tommy are not what he thinks, and he asks for her assistance. Ella agrees to help because she is a good person and feels responsible that this happened while Violette was on tour in her company. This historical mystery takes us back to a turning point in history where immigrants are assimilating into America and face discrimination for coming from humble beginnings. Ella is the daughter of a Jewish immigrant and Irish immigrant who meet when entering the country. Both of her parents have died, and her Mother died in her arms when she was just eight years old. She was taken in by her Aunt Ellen (her Irish father’s sister and Tommy’s Mother) and these reflections are so powerful to the person that Ella has become who wants to only do good. She is respectable and faces prejudice at ever turn from members of New York’s upper crust. Her cousin Tommy is a former boxing champ, business partner and protector and is not so sure about the Duke. There is a connection between the Duke and Ella but both are acting respectable, so nothing is going to happen. Ella and Tommy have a strong circle of friends with reporters (Hetty, Landry, and Uncle Preston), opera company (Marie, Louis, and Anna along with all of their kids.. love the Morsel) to complete their family and who are willing to listen and help Ella if they can. All of her female friends are pushing her to think about the Duke in a romantic way and the subtle hint of the clock ticking on her age. There is so much in this story and it just draws you into her world and Ella’s quest for the truth for Frances although she was not friends with her. The reveal of the killer is ultimately dramatic and fitting. This was such an enjoyable read and I cannot wait for the next installment. This is a winner.

After a slump of not so good books, this was such a relief! The story of Ella Shane, a opera singer in 1899, is told with a great deal of verve, humor and talent. Kalb's characterization is top-notch and was particularly pleased that she has clearly done her historical research into the setting and what was proper in society at the time. Fair warning, the mystery in this is particularly slight, but you'll have so much fun with her characters that you probably won't notice.

I thoroughly enjoyed the whole thing and sincerely hope that this is the start of a series, especially since when I finished it, my first thought as I frantically swiped hoping there was one more page, was MORE PLEASE!

1899 Ella Shane, opera singer is performing as Romeo when her Juliet, Violette Saint Claire, actually dies on her death scene. The death is deemed an accident to save her reputation for her family from the taint of suicide.
In the following April, Gilbert Saint Aubyn, Duke of Leith approaches Ella for information on the death of his cousin, Lady Frances Saint Aubyn aka Violette.
This is an enjoyable historical cozy mystery though for me not enough of a mystery and not really enough suspects to make a complex storyline.

4.5 Stars

This looks to be a standalone historic cozy mystery by Kathleen Marple Kalb. I do hope it will become a series.

I am totally intrigued by the relationship between the Duke Gilbert and Ella Shane. That alone will keep me coming back for more.

Basic premise: A girl in the role of Juliet is found dead by an overdose of nicotine. Turns out the girl is more than she seems and is related to English royalty. She had been working for Ella’s theater company and she feels compelled to find the reason for her ingenue’s death. This introduces her to Duke Gilbert and an unknown assailant who wants Ella dead as well.

Loved the park scene with the velocipede, sort of like a big tricycle for adults. It was an incarnation of the bicycle. This helped to show how forward thinking Ella was and how the society was back at this time.

I was hooked the entire time. I relished the scenes where Ella and the Duke were together. Plus the whodunit was so spot on that I had no clue who the bad guy was until the bad guy was revealed. Just one stellar read! I definitely want this to be made into a series… did I say that already?

If you love a good historic cozy mystery, definitely check this one out . You won’t be disappointed.

I received this as an ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) in return for an honest review. I thank NetGalley, the publisher and the author for allowing me to read this title.

I kind of enjoyed this book but it was too silly to really take seriously. I felt like it wasn't serious enough to qualify as a mystery.

I loved this book. The writing was extremely well done and both the characters and story line were both interesting and fun. It was a great fun historical mystery. I look forward to reading more from this author and highly recommend it!

I generally don't like historical books but I enjoyed this one. The characters are very distinct in their personalities and very enjoyable to get to know. I'm glad to see the relationship develop between Miss Shane and the Duke, it's be interesting to see how it goes in the future. The perspective on women's rights and how women were treated by in the 1899 is interesting. It's slow going on the mystery of what happened to Frances but the interaction of the characters is interesting en0ugh not to seem slow in the pacing. The reveal/scene with the bad guy was exciting. #AFatalFinale #NetGalley

This was a very enjoyable historical mystery, I’m hoping it’s the first in a series because I’m definitely interested in these characters and would love to read more.

I really like Ella’s character, she was realistic and resourceful. Gil was great and the hints of romance between the two was just the right tone, not the main focus of the book but a part of it that didn’t overpower the murder mystery.

As for the murder, it happens to the company’s most recent Juliet dies by poison early on in the book, only to find out shortly after that her cousin, Gilbert, is a duke. He comes to find out how she really died which leads to a plot with lots of twists and turns and the introduction of a lot of secondary characters, most of whom I liked, that left me guessing for a while in how the murderer was.

There’s many historical mysteries done in this time period with the theater as a background but this one felt fresh and not just a repeat of similar books out there that have already been published.

Interesting premise set in an intriguing time and place. The murder happens quite quickly, setting the scene for intrigue early on. The introduction of characters and twists are clever. However, I just couldn’t connect with the main character, although I’m sure others will. I love an original story and this adventure set in 1899 New York City is unique.

1890s, historical-research, historical-setting, mystery, acting

What a wonderful story! It really has it all: a mystery, historical insights into class and religious distinctions and discriminations, misogyny, and a bit of romance. And don't forget the velocipedes! The characters are real (the good, the bad, and the disgusting), the research and motivation that brought out things about bullemia in the late nineteenth century, and the plight of stage people that lingered long into the twentieth century. Very enjoyable and well written. Loved it!
I requested and received a free ebook copy from Kensington Books via NetGalley. Thank you!